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What is the NAICS?

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by Statistics Canada in conjunction with the Mexican and United States governments. In total, there are 20 different industry sectors identified in NAICS, identified by a specific 2-digit sector code.

Each of the NAICS categories listed above can be broken down even further to a 3-digit, 4-digit, 5-digit level, with each level becoming more specific. Let’s use Milk Production as a quick example to illustrate the levels:

11 Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting

112 Animal production and aquaculture

1121 Cattle ranching and farming

11212 Dairy cattle and milk production

How Do I find an Industry?

In total, there are over 900 Canadian industries listed in the NAICS, each with a different code to identify the specific industry. For a complete list of all of the NAICS codes, the NAICS structure, and related information, users can download the full PDF document at Statistics Canada – NAICS. Additional resources that users can access include:

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Workforce Development Board is a not-for-profit organization located in Peterborough and serving Northumberland, Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton. Founded in 1996, WDB is funded by the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities to provide labour market information, coordinate employment and training services, and engage employer communities.

This project is funded in part by the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario.